Home Alone: 9 Dark Fan Theories That Change Everything

Many dark Home Alone theories completely change the meaning of the movie and paint Kevin as everything from a serial killer to a ghost.

• Home Alone theories reveal hidden meanings and dark interpretations of the Christmas comedy.
• Theories suggest Kevin's mom made a deal with the devil, Kevin's dad is a mobster, and Uncle Frank is the real villain.
• Other theories propose that Kevin's father hates him, Old Man Marley is Kevin from the future, and the McCallisters are a cult.

Many dark Home Alone theories make the Christmas classic starring Macaulay Culkin a completely different viewing experience — and the myriad of ways the movie can be plausibly reinterpreted speaks for its quality as a hilarious and unique story. Released in 1990, Home Alone tells the story of 8-year-old Kevin McCallister (Culkin) whose parents mistakenly leave him behind when they go on their Christmas vacation. While stuck at home alone, he has to defend his home from two burglars known as the Wet Bandits and does so with a variety of ingenious traps.

While it has many fun scenes, it also has plenty of moments that have led to some incredibly dark Home Alone theories. Many aspects of the story, such as Kevin's talent for creating deadly traps and the fact his parents would forget him in the first place, have spawned some interesting ideas about hidden meanings behind Home Alone. Many viewers throughout the years filled in the blanks left by the holiday classic with their ideas, with the best and darkest Home Alone theories changing the perspective of the Christmas comedy into something much more sinister.

9 PHOTOS

9. Gus Is The Devil
Kevin's Mom Made A Deal With The Devil

One Home Alone theory puts forward that Kevin's mother, Kate, wants to get back to her son so badly, she makes a bargain with the devil. That is at least one interpretation of the scene where she meets John Candy's Gus. Reddit user Drewgarr mentions that Kate says she would "sell her soul to the devil himself" to get back home to her son. At this exact moment, Gus — who the theory puts forward as Satan in disguise — offers to help.

Several things line up that make this theory about Home Alone surprisingly plausible. The Scranton airport is near a crossroads (the devil at the crossroads myths). As soon as Kate says yes to Gus's offer, he points to a rental van to take her home. To add to the theory, she gets home at the same time she would have if she waited for the next plane, meaning she sold her soul for nothing — a twist typical of movies where characters bargain with Satan.

8. Kevin's Dad Is A Mobster
Peter McCallister Is A Member Of The Mob

Redditor cubanesis came up with a Home Alone theory that suggests Kevin's dad, Peter, might be a criminal. This makes a lot of sense, as the family in Home Alone is shown to be rich, affording a nice house in a high-class neighborhood, and affording plane tickets to France for the whole family. When burglar Harry, disguised as a police officer, shows up, a perplexed Peter asks, "Am I under arrest?"

This is a strange reaction to a simple police visit and has led internet users to believe that Peter is a mob boss, which could also explain his large income. Add in an uncle who seems very dubious and one son who seems completely sadistic, and the McCallister family may be part of a criminal empire.

7. Uncle Frank Is The Real Villain
Uncle Frank Hired The Wet Bandits To Rob His Brother

Uncle Frank is very prominently shown to have a natural hatred for Kevin and jealousy of his brother's income. Luminescence9 speculates on Reddit that Uncle Frank may have hired Harry and Marv to rob the house and make Kevin the prime suspect, as he was the only one alone in the house, making the crime that much more believable.

Some who buy into this Home Alone theory even believe that Uncle Frank had hired the Wet Bandits to take care of Kevin in the home invasion and leaving him behind was part of his elaborate plan. His greed and visibly prominent twisted personality in the movies, make this theory very palpable and probable, once gone into detail.

6. Kevin's Father Hates Him
Kevin's Dad Wanted To Get Rid Of His Son

This Home Alone theory proposes that Peter McCalsiter shares no bond or loving relationship with his son, Kevin, but rather seeks to, somehow, get rid of him. The rare interactions between the two in all movies of the series start with Peter scolding Kevin. "Kevin's family was emotionally abusive," Griffer00 explained on Reddit. And the second movie starts with Peter, very suspiciously, leaving Kevin behind, on purpose, in the airport. These scenarios in the movies further form evidence of this extremely probable theory, which is not as far-fetched as it would seem at first glance.

5. Old Man Marley Is Kevin From The Future
Kevin Wants To Save Himself From A Lonely Fate

Marley is very important to the story of Home Alone. He saves Kevin when he is about to be killed by Harry and Marv, and enables Kevin to come to friendly terms with his family, and much more — all of which seems too good to be true. Reddit user Spookycookies has a Home Alone theory that suggests Old Man Marley is Kevin from the future.

This is why Marley can help Kevin ever so easily, and always seems to be in the right place just when Kevin needs him most. This Home Alone theory explains that Kevin/Marly had family issues in the future caused by the events of the film and wanted to prevent present-day Kevin from driving a wedge between his family and save himself from the lonely life he'd experienced, creating a fun time travel paradox.

4. The McCallisters Are A Cult
The McCallisters Have Sheltered Themselves From Outsiders

Many viewers found it strange that such a large family share a single house in Home Alone. One Home Alone theory takes this idea further and puts forward that the McCallister family is a cult. According to the theory, the family is taught to ignore the outside world, and since childhood have developed a hate for non-McCallister members.

This is why Buzz accuses Old Man Marley of murder, urging his family to stay away from their neighbor altogether. With fearing even Harry, dressed up as a cop, and the pizza delivery guy, and having shown to have no friends outside their family, the McCalisters might just be a cult. Kevin might be trapped inside this dangerous family, which could also explain his lack of care for the safety of others.

3. Kevin Is Dead
Kevin Is Living In A Purgatory Of Sorts

Possibly one of the darkest Home Alone theories suggests that Kevin is dead, and, in the form of a ghost, is terrorizing his family by putting toy cars in their paths and causing mayhem. This theory first came from the outlet Daily Beast, which wrote, "Nobody thought Kevin would join them on the trip to Paris because he’s a spirit who is tethered to the house." Furthermore, many members of his family call him a "disease" and the "only trouble-making child out of 15." Kate also seems very perplexed when Gus brings up that he left his child in a funeral parlor for a whole day, signaling maybe her son is also in a grave, possibly nearby.

2. Peter McCallister Is Training Secret Agents
The Wet Bandits Worked For Kevin's Dad

Peter McCallister is a pretty questionable character throughout Home Alone. He is unaffected when Kevin is physically and emotionally tortured by his cousins and siblings. Not to mention that he has already trained Buzz to be rather anti-social and violent. This Reddit theory on Home Alone from a now-deleted account states that Kevin's father orchestrates the whole break-in to make sure Kevin knows how to survive, and repeats the process a second time in Home Alone 2 to make sure Kevin living through the first movie wasn't a fluke. The end goal is Kevin being inducted into his agent program — which feels remarkably plausible considering his uncanny aptitude for creating traps.

1. Kevin Is The Jigsaw Killer
Kevin Has A Very Dark Future After Home Alone

In the first Home Alone film, Kevin shows an aptitude for the grim and dark world of torture. These traps are elaborate and impressive and only get more intense as the series continues. Some viewers believe these traps are similar to those in the Saw series. One of the most popular Home Alone theories is that Kevin grows up to become Jigsaw.

Maybe taking down the Wet Bandits gives him a taste for blood, and he decides to spend his adult years playing god on his terms. Redditor deaconblue4 wrote, "They both punish criminals, have strained relationships with their families, and devise insidious death traps to maim and kill all of the people they lure to their location." While the movies aren't officially linked, and Jigsaw's origin story is known, it's one of the most interesting Home Alone theories — and changes the significance of its many slapstick comedy moments into something far more sinister.